California water issues awash in politics

And this year — the state’s driest year on record — is fertile ground for a water war.

With overwhelming Republican support, the House of Representatives earlier this month passed HR 3964, a bill that would loosen rules that govern how water is drawn from the river deltas that feed the San Francisco Bay. The Delta is the source of water for farmers and millions of residents throughout the state.

The bill was introduced by Rep. David Valadao, R-Hanford, who represents a rural Central Valley district.

Experts say Senate Democrats will never pass it, making it dead on arrival in the upper chamber.

The law would reshape the Bay-Delta Accord, a document forged in the wake of the state’s last big drought, which took place from 1987-1992. The accord makes sure that enough water is left in rivers to sustain the ecosystem.

The accord reduced water supplies to farmers.

Valadao criticized the agreement, saying his “constituents are suffering from drought conditions severely exacerbated by erroneous federal regulations. Families and farmers alike are not receiving the water they need to meet their basic, every-day needs.”

The proposed law rankled California Gov. Jerry Brown, who said Valadao should stay out of water policy compromises that took years to develop.

“It would override state laws and protections, and mandate that certain water interests come out ahead of others,” wrote Brown in a letter to Congress.